Jana Febbraro

Jana Febbraro


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

5Years (2022-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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25 August 2022 in Materials
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
PDF file
S. Adriana Estrada A.S. Adriana Estrada A.
S. Adriana Estrada A.
IGIsabella Guger
Isabella Guger
JFJana Febbraro
Jana Febbraro
ATAyse Zeren Turak
Ayse Zeren Turak
HLHong-Ru Lin
Hong-Ru Lin
Oliver BrüggemannOliver Brüggemann
Oliver Brüggemann
The natural occurrence of precious opals, consisting of highly organized silica particles, has prompted interest in the synthesis and formation of these structures. Previous research has shown that a highly organized photonic crystal (PhC) array is only possible when it is based on a low polydispersity index (PDI) sample of particles. In this study, a solvent-only variation method is used to synthesize different sizes of silica particles (SiPs) by following the traditional sol-gel Stöber approach. The controlled rate of the addition of the reagents promoted the homogeneity of the nucleation and growth of the spherical silica particles, which in turn yielded a low PDI. The opalescent PhC were obtained via self-assembly of these particles using a solvent evaporation method. Analysis of the spatial statistics, using Voronoi tessellations, pair correlation functions, and bond order analysis showed that the successfully formed arrays showed a high degree of quasi-hexagonal (hexatic) organization, with both global and local order. Highly organized PhC show potential for developing future materials with tunable structural reflective properties, such as solar cells, sensing materials, and coatings, among others.